Serbia "will not allow any change to Brussels deal"

BELGRADE Serbia will not allow any change to the Brussels deal with Pristina, Serbian Government Secretary General Veljko Odalovic has said. He spoke for Tanjug ahead of Tuesday's continuation of talks on the implementation of that document. Serbia "will not allow any change to Brussels deal" Moreover, Odalovic is sure that it will be possible to reach an agreement with Serb officials in Kosovo and Metohija on the implementation of the Belgrade-Pristina agreement. Odalovic, who is also a member of the government team tasked with drafting a plan for the implementation, said in an interview to Tanjug that the forthcoming meeting between government officials and the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija may not resolve all the outstanding problems, but he believes that some progress will be made. "A deal with the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija is of great importance. The complete implementation and all that should follow depend to a great extent on what stance the Serb community in Kosovo and Metohija would take regarding that plan," said the general secretary. Odalovic believes in a relation of trust that the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija have toward the institutions of Serbia such as the parliament and government, as the Brussels agreement was fully approved in all these institutions. Speaking about the first meeting between the teams for implementation, which has been held in Brussels recently, Odalovic underlines that Belgrade's delegation presented a very clear position that it is willing to adhere to the signed agreement in good faith, and implement its spirit. "Pristina did not think in that way, even at some point we recognized that the requirements of EU officials were not in the spirit of what the basic document sets forth. We warned them about that, and made it clear that it is completely unacceptable for us," he said. Odalovic, who is traveling to Brussels on Tuesday for talks on the implementation, underscores there is room for finding mutually acceptable solutions. "The agreement set the frames, the plan offers the concrete dynamics, and realization means that a community of Serb municipalities should be formed in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo and Metohija, in the first phase- only in the north, and later in all municipalities where they reside. That community is the main link between the first signed agreement and an implementation plan that should be delivered," Odalovic explained. Veljko Odalovic (Tanjug) Tanjug

Serbia "will not allow any change to Brussels deal"

Moreover, Odalović is sure that it will be possible to reach an agreement with Serb officials in Kosovo and Metohija on the implementation of the Belgrade-Priština agreement.

Odalović, who is also a member of the government team tasked with drafting a plan for the implementation, said in an interview to Tanjug that the forthcoming meeting between government officials and the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija may not resolve all the outstanding problems, but he believes that some progress will be made.

"A deal with the Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija is of great importance. The complete implementation and all that should follow depend to a great extent on what stance the Serb community in Kosovo and Metohija would take regarding that plan," said the general secretary.

Odalović believes in a relation of trust that the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija have toward the institutions of Serbia such as the parliament and government, as the Brussels agreement was fully approved in all these institutions.

Speaking about the first meeting between the teams for implementation, which has been held in Brussels recently, Odalović underlines that Belgrade's delegation presented a very clear position that it is willing to adhere to the signed agreement in good faith, and implement its spirit.

"Priština did not think in that way, even at some point we recognized that the requirements of EU officials were not in the spirit of what the basic document sets forth. We warned them about that, and made it clear that it is completely unacceptable for us," he said.

Odalović, who is traveling to Brussels on Tuesday for talks on the implementation, underscores there is room for finding mutually acceptable solutions.

"The agreement set the frames, the plan offers the concrete dynamics, and realization means that a community of Serb municipalities should be formed in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo and Metohija, in the first phase- only in the north, and later in all municipalities where they reside. That community is the main link between the first signed agreement and an implementation plan that should be delivered," Odalović explained.